at a glance

In the early seventeenth century, fishermen built a small chapel on the stone promontory of the current Copacabana Fort, and years later, an image of the Virgin of Copacabana, brought from the shores of Lake Titicaca, Bolivia, by silver merchants, was enthroned in the chapel.

while the source of the name is uncertain, some say that it is of Andean origin - 'copac' means blue, and 'cahuana' means lookout, merging into 'Copacabana' in bolivian spanish, or lookout into the blue.

the date of the foundation of the original chapel is unknown, but it is known that in 1732 the chapel was in ruins until Bishop Antonio do desterro improved the old building - In 1858, the chapel was again renovated and enlarged, until 1919, when The church which gave its name to the neighborhood, disappeared with the completion of the costruction of the Copacabana Fort.

the neighborhood was established as copacabana in 1892, with the opening of tunel velho, integrating it with the rest of the city, which in turn enabled it to grow - another major turning point was the inauguration of the avenida atlântica which is runs along the promenade since the early 1900's.